Re: Positioning Priyadarsi

Dear all,

A kavya called Krishna caritam was ascribed to Samudra gupta but it is found as a forgery.

On the other hand, it is mentioned by Raja sekhar that Candragupta was one of the poets whose talents were adjudged by the poets of Ujjain royal assembly.

We find one reference from Kuvalayamala of Udyotana suri (as found by Ajay Mitra Shastri and quoted by Ashivini Agarwal):

" Tipurisa charia pasiddho supurisa chariena payato loya |

Sa jayati Devagutto vamse Guttanam rayarisi||"

It means that Rajarshi(royal sage) Devagupta of the Gupta dynasty became world famous by his 9two) writings Tripursha Charita

and Supursha charita. Ashvini Agarwal thinks that this is none else than Chandragupta II. It is possible that these might be sanskrit plays since on the couch type of his gold coins we have the epithet rupakriti or a playwright.

While I have to more carefully look into this, prima facie, Chandra gupta may not be person who is being described here since Suri was talking of only Jain writers.

Kuvalayamälä also talks of King Toramäîa, who ruled at the town of Pavvaiyä situated on the bank of Chandrabhägä (Chenab) in the Uttaräpatha, was a disciple of Harigupta, born in the Gupta family. We are further told that the city could boast of a great number of scholars. This Harigupta is further described as the Guru of Mahäkavi Devagupta who is apparently mentioned also in the Mahaniáïtha

We also find Prabhavati gupta, the bride of Vakatakas talks of Devagupta as her father, who is widely identified as Chandra gupta. Again, this aspect has to be carefully reconsidered and I reserve my comments for now. (cf Riddhapur copper plate inscription)

Another Devagupta is also mentioned in the history, almost immediate to Gupta kings. He ruled over Ujjain, Kanauj and Malwa [note that Bana did not differentiate between Malwa and Ujjain] and was defeated by Rajyavardhana, the elder brother of Harsha.

AK Warder in his Indian Kavya Literature: The Ways to Originality places the Devagutta mentioned below in 700's on par with the above Devagupta, as Kuvalaya mala belongs to 778 CE

The group may please reciprocate.

regards,.

Kishore patnaik